I understand that feeling. When everything that was big and bold has withered down to a little husk that I can't feel anymore, let alone find. When my soul seems so empty that I can't possibly have a single thought that is just mine, that hasn't been spoken by someone else and assimilated into my core and adopted.

But somewhere inside of me, hidden behind all of that garbage from everyone else, there is a little husk that was once mine, and inside of that I know there is at least one little kernel of something nourishing and wholesome and healthy.

You have your kernels, Peg. You may not be able to see or feel or acknowledge them just now, but they exist and they are ever-present. Our truths don't just up and leave us because the wind changes direction. They wait for us to find secure footing in the new gale before sending their new rootlets out to find purchase.

And if you can't believe in yourself just now, I'll believe in you until and after you can.